Ship&#39;s-course-recording apparatus.



No. 7||,97I. Patented 0st. 28'-, i902'.l

` J. HOPE.

SHIPS COURSE RECORDING PPABAIT'US.

(Appliclticm led my 28, 1902.\ (No Indel.)

@www Q "w UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN HOPE, OE LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND.

SHlPS-COURSE-RECORDING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 711,971, dated October 28, 1902.

Application filed May 23, 1902.

To all whom it may oon/cern:

Be it known that I, JOHN HOPE, a subject of the King of England, and a resident of Liverpool, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in Ships-Oourse-Recording Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to apparatus for continuously recording on a strip of paper or the like the direction and variations of ships movements, or, in other words, the direction sailed by a ship, the variation of its compass, and the time of the several records, thus producing a permanent log graphically of the course run by the ship.

This invention has for its object and eiect to provide certain improvements hereinafter described in connection with the apparatus covered under my former patent, No. 670,861, of March 26, 1901-that is to say, it has for its obj ect to provide sim ple and efiicient means for feeding ink to the markers.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and in connection with which it will be further described.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal section illustrating the improvements on the upper part of the recording apparatus. Fig. 2 is a section illustrating the ink-containers and parts to a larger scale, and Fig. 3 is a plan view of the apparatus.

The apparatus shown is of the kind in which a strip of paper wis moved over a table a and is marked at given intervals of time-say a minnte-by a marking device disposed above the diagram-strip and 4adapted to revolve about an axis or arbor, its position being controlled by magnets mounted on and adapted to revolve about an axis coincident with that of the markers. The markers are moved down and up at suited intervals onto and off the paper strip. This up-and-down movement of the marker and the movement of the strip of paper longitudinally past it are effected by suitable motor mechanism of any known suitable kind, such as spring-motor time-keeping mechanism, as has commonly hitherto been employed. In the case shown in the drawings the paper moves over the ta ble o, while b is a table below carrying the main magnets fi, held in a case c. Connected Serial No 108,655. (No model.)

with the markers, which consist of hollow pens, (designated f,) is a small magnet c, extending across the axis of the instrument, and this magnet is controlled by the main magnets t, contained within the case fi. Between the magnet e and the markers is an ordinary compass-card e'.

The magnetsi are mounted and adapted to revolve upon an axis i2, which is coincident with the axis of the magnet e and that about which the markers f are adapted to revolve. The magnets i being the main operative magnets of the apparatus, they control the position of the magnet e and also the markers j'. This characteristic and arrangement forms no part of the present invention, being set forth in my former patent, No. 670,861, of 1901. On the other hand, the present improvements are not restricted to this particular mode of operating and controlling the position of the markers f.

The sheet or strip of paper moves over the front portion of the table a and under the plate a2-that is, between this plate and the table-While at the back part of the table (designated o) the strip moves under it, it being passed under the back part over a roller a5, through the apparatus under the part a, over the roller a and table a. This back part a is detachable, it being held onto the front portion a of the table by binding-screws a, and it carries a bracket g, which supports the upper end of the arbor supporting the markers. f

The markers f, magnet c, and card e' are supported upon the arbor h, the lower end of which rests in a socket o, While the upper end of the arbor extends through an externallythreaded tubej, fixed in the end ofthe bracket g and is supported by a bearingj in the upper end of this tube, through which it passes. The socket is on the end ot' a bar o2, supported on the frame o3, which is hinged at o' to each side of the apparatus, and this frame is raised and lowered by the pins o5, which act on the under side of the arms o4, the pins o5 being raised up and lowered in any suitable known Way. Then the arms o4 are pressed up and the frame o3 moved about its hinges o', the bar o2 is raised and the socket o lifted, and so the whole marker device is raised, and

IOO

small hole at the end or bottom and the marking-ink is supplied to them from storage vessels f', arranged concentrically around the,

arbor h, which is threaded, and upon it the vessels j" are adjusted vertically, they being held and locked in position by a lockingnut h2.

When it is desired to use dierentcolored marking fluids in the pens f, two annularconcentric reservoirs f' are used, as shown in the drawings, and the fluid is conveyed from them to the pens f by tubes f2 as it is consumed. Only that marker f which is standing outside the periphery of the circular plate 0.2 will mark the strip as the strip a: moves only over that half of the table d, beneath this plate, and the back part 0. is at a level below the downward limit of travel of the pens f.

In some cases by the markers f being lowered onto and raised o the paper and partly by the ship being in a seaway an oscillation of the pens about their axis is set up, which is objectionable. To diminish the vibratory action, there. is employed in connection with the markers a liquid brake device. In the case shown it consists of la Abox p, containing liquid and supported onto the external thread of the tube j by an internally-threaded sleeve p', while on the end of the arbor 72 are paddles q, depending from a cross-bar q', fixed on the end of this arbor. This paddle device is stationary vertically; but the box 1o is adj ustable vertically, this being eected by screwing it up or down on the sleeve j. By this action the ends of the paddles q are immersed farther or less in the liquid. In order to render the adjustment and degree of braking action more easily eected, the paddletips are tapered, as shown.

In action when the markers tend to vibrate about the axis or arbor h the liquid in the cup p oers resistance to movement of the paddles q through it, and it brings the markers to rest quickly.

In some cases instead of the magnets t' being separate from the markers f they may be fixed to the arbor on which these markers are carried, and so control the position thereof directly.

By the construction and mode of mounting of, the reservoirs f', by holding one of the markers in one hand and the card in the other these two may be moved about one another and adjusted to any angle desired, so that the marker may be brought to near the center of the strip of paper being used, whatever the course being steered may be, where the variations of its marking, due to variations of the course steered by the ship, are rendered more manifest. In this adjusting of the pen in relation to the card and the magnet e, the magnet e and card e2 move around the arbor h, and the arbor moves with the reservoirs f.

Having now described my invention, what` I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1; In a ships-course-recording apparatus,

a marker supported from and adapted to vi- A brate about an axis, an ink-reservoir concentric to said axis,for feeding ink to said marker; substantially as described.

2. In a ships-course-recording apparatus,`

a plurality of markers supported from and adapted to vibrate about an axis, a plurality of ink-containing vessels concentric to sad axis for supplying ink to said markers, and tubes extending between said reservoirs and said markers; substantially as described.

3. In a ships-course-recording apparatus, the combination of an arbor h, concentric inkreservoirs f thereon, marker-pens f, and the tubes f2 extending between said reservoirs and the pens; substantially as described.

4.-. In a ships-course-recording apparatus, a vibrating marker, an ink-reservoir concentric of said marker-axis for'feeding ink to said marker, and a liquid brake device connected with said marker, comprising a liquidcontainer and a paddle working therein, said j paddle and container having relative movement, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set m hand in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN HOPE.

Witnesses:

S. GooDALL, LEONARD HAWLEY. 

